PA Cops Can Search Your Car Without a Warrant

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numbersix

Lifer
Jul 27, 2012
5,449
53
Gonna have to cancel that trip to PA I wasn't going to take...
If the police stop you in Pennsylvania, they don’t need a warrant to search your car.
And soon, you could be in trouble even if they find nothing..
The state General Assembly, meanwhile, is moving forward with a bill that would give cops the authority to arrest people caught with “secret compartments” in their vehicles, even if there is nothing illegal in those suspicious containers.
It adds up to greater authority for police and prosecutors but less privacy for Pennsylvania drivers...
“It is part of the expanding criminalization of America where virtually any act can be charged as a crime by police,” Turley wrote in December about the Gurley case.
Read more...
http://www.pottsmerc.com/general-news/20140519/cops-can-now-search-your-car-without-a-warrant-in-pa

 

numbersix

Lifer
Jul 27, 2012
5,449
53
My MINI Cooper has a secret compartment (actually 2, one in the arm rest and one in the dash board)
armrest2.jpg

8O

 

necron99

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 4, 2014
268
0
The law don't suspend reasonable cause. Many states have the same. They don't need a warrant but do ha e to be able to prove reasonable cause to believe you committed a crime. I am not a big fan of the move.

 
Dec 24, 2012
7,195
456
Are they secret if you know about them? Or if they were built by the manufacturer, how could they ever be classified as "secret".
I can't see this passing constitutional muster.

 

frankenstein

Might Stick Around
Dec 7, 2013
59
0
numbersix: Don't place your tobacco and pipes there. Or you might have to visit the "big house". :|

 

daimyo

Lifer
May 15, 2014
1,460
4
Cops illegally search vehicles daily and our courts will buy any excuse for probable cause. We haven't been a free country for some time, sadly. Property confiscation is a healthy business for our government.

 

radio807

Can't Leave
Nov 26, 2011
444
7
New Jersey
My MINI Cooper has a secret compartment (actually 2, one in the arm rest and one in the dash board)

You have nothing to worry about. Now that you've disclosed your car's compartments they're no longer secret.

 

rangerearthpig

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 5, 2014
858
1
Peck wrote: "Are they secret if you know about them? Or if they were built by the manufacturer, how could they ever be classified as "secret"."
If it's truly a secret...nobody will know about it. Why all the fuss? :lol:

 

dhizzy

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 29, 2011
649
1
Oh boy, here we go again.
But being one of the resident cops I will chime in and pass along my thoughts.
As far as the search of a vehicle without a warrant, this is nothing new (in most states) provided the officer has probable cause. I believe probable cause was what necron99 was referring to when he said reasonable cause. A warrantless search is considered reasonable on a vehicle because of what the US Supreme Court calls the vehicle exception rule. As a matter of fact, I performed just such a search on my shift earlier today. Stopped car for traffic violation. K9 alerted to car=car searched right there without warrant. Now there are exceptions to the vehicle exception rule. If the vehicle is located unoccupied and PC is developed, we must obtain a warrant to search it. The vehicle exception rule is for vehicles that are being operated or are at least moveable by the occupant(s).
Now on to the secret compartment law. I think it has its purpose but the elected officials are overstepping here. Many vehicles are manufactured with such compartments now. I guess I would understand if it was obviously a homemade compartment for illegal stuff. If you aren't hauling illegal stuff, there's generally not a need for a secret compartment. I have found a few of these types of compartments before and they usually contain an illegally possessed gun or drugs. Ive never seen one where it was being used to store something legit.

 

novicemaker

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 12, 2014
223
0
Yea they still need reasonable cause, you can say no to the search and you can give them your dl number and drive off. My friends home was invaded by constables and cops because someone said they smelled weed outside there home, after finding nothing they left without so much as an im sorry.
They can use the only in plain sight rule to justify a search, but if nothing is in sight just say no and if the cop has a problem to bad.

 

andrew

Lifer
Feb 13, 2013
3,042
400
Have you guys watched cops ever? Pretty much all of the cases on there would be thrown out in Canada. Walking while black seems to be a major crime in the USA. This is nothing new really.

 

novicemaker

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 12, 2014
223
0
is famous words go
"Absolute power corrupts absolutely". And another more common quote "With great power comes greater responsibility."
Its one of those things, no one can be a politician and say they have never lied while working at they station, and liers cant be trusted. And those that are of good moral standing tend to not be around long enough to make a difference.
But alas we can talk about political issues on the forum.

 
Mar 30, 2014
2,853
78
wv
What about the "constitution free zone"? If you're within 100 miles of the continental border (all 4 sides) DHS can do as they damn well please. God help us. Rand Paul 2016!!! I've typed to many trigger words. Oh no! NSA will put me on the watch list now. This is the America we live in now.

 

dochudson

Lifer
May 11, 2012
1,635
12
those black helicopters you don't see have already done a full body scan on your car.. the NSA can pull every email and call you have made. best way to avoid being searched is to not do something stupid to get stopped and if stopped don't act like a jerk.

 

woodsroad

Lifer
Oct 10, 2013
11,568
15,208
SE PA USA
"Walking while black seems to be a major crime in the USA"
There are abuses by government in every nation on earth, and Canada is no exception. It simply enjoys the benefits of being a segregated monoculture, where most of the population looks, thinks and acts in a similar manner, or keeps to themselves. Where there is cultural/ethnic cross-contact is where you have problems. I'm not a segregationist, racial supremacist or any other such deluded moron, I'm just pointing out the obvious.
The answer to the problem at hand, though, is an educated, informed, inspired and motivated citizenry. That takes leadership, something we have not had in this country for several generations now. Of course, what I'm describing could also fairly be referred to as utopian. I don't know...it seems that all societies eventually devolve into some form of slave state. Humans are pack animals, and by definition, the majority of us are physiologically subservient followers. Leaders are outliers. Altruistic leaders are an f'n fluke of nature. The Founders were an aligning of the stars, an exceedingly rare convocation of altruistic leaders who attempted to codify their behavior in The Constitution. They did a damned fine job of it, but human nature, nonetheless, has prevailed over them.
Once again, we are in dire need of leadership capable of inspiring an overwhelming willingness on the part of the electorate to water the tree of Liberty. Of course, possessing that willingness means that the option would never need to be exercised.

 
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